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Mobile phone exposure and spatial memory

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Wiholm C, Lowden A, Kuster N, Hillert L, Arnetz BB, Akerstedt T, Moffat SD · 2009

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People who reported symptoms from mobile phone use improved their spatial navigation performance during RF exposure, while those without symptoms did not.

Plain English Summary

Summary written for general audiences

Researchers studied the effects of a 2 1/2 h RF exposure at 884 MHz on spatial memory and learning using a double-blind repeated measures design. The exposure was designed to mimic that experienced during a real-life mobile phone conversation, with an average peak spatial specific absorption rate of 1.4 W/kg. Results showed a significant RF exposure by group effect on distance traveled during the trials, with the symptomatic group improving their performance during RF exposure while there was no such effect in the non-symptomatic group.

Why This Matters

The participants were daily mobile phone users, divided into those with and without symptoms attributed to regular mobile phone use. The spatial task was a virtual navigation test modeled after the Morris Water Maze, a commonly used and validated method. The design maximized the exposure to the left hemisphere. The researchers noted that the cause of the difference between groups could only be speculated about until the finding is further investigated.

Exposure Details

SAR
1.4 W/kg
Source/Device
884 MHz
Exposure Duration
2.5 h

Exposure Context

This study used 1.4 W/kg for SAR (device absorption):

Building Biology guidelines are practitioner-based limits from real-world assessments. BioInitiative Report recommendations are based on peer-reviewed science. Check Your Exposure to compare your own measurements.

Where This Falls on the Concern Scale

Study Exposure Level in ContextStudy Exposure Level in ContextThis study: 1.4 W/kgExtreme Concern - 0.1 W/kgFCC Limit - 1.6 W/kgEffects observed in the Extreme Concern range (Building Biology)FCC limit is 1 times higher than this level
A logarithmic frequency spectrum from 10 Hz to 100 GHz showing where this study's 884 MHz exposure sits relative to common EMF sources.Where This Frequency Sits on the EMF SpectrumELFVLFLF / MFHF / VHFUHFSHFmm10 Hz100 GHzThis study: 884 MHzPower lines50/60 Hz5G mm28 GHzLogarithmic scale

Study Details

This study investigated the effects of a 2 1/2 h RF exposure (884 MHz) on spatial memory and learning, using a double‐blind repeated measures design.

The exposure was designed to mimic that experienced during a real‐life mobile phone conversation. Th...

Results revealed a main effect of RF exposure and a significant RF exposure by group effect on dista...

Cite This Study
Wiholm C, Lowden A, Kuster N, Hillert L, Arnetz BB, Akerstedt T, Moffat SD (2009). Mobile phone exposure and spatial memory Bioelectromagnetics. 30(1):59-65, 2009.
Show BibTeX
@article{c_2009_mobile_phone_exposure_and_203,
  author = {Wiholm C and Lowden A and Kuster N and Hillert L and Arnetz BB and Akerstedt T and Moffat SD},
  title = {Mobile phone exposure and spatial memory},
  year = {2009},
  doi = {10.1002/bem.20443},
  url = {https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/bem.20443},
}
DOI: 10.1002/bem.20443

Cited By (50 papers)

View all 50 citing papers on Semantic Scholar

Quick Questions About This Study

The study used a 2 1/2 h RF exposure at 884 MHz, designed to mimic that experienced during a real-life mobile phone conversation.
The average exposure was a peak spatial specific absorption rate of 1.4 W/kg.
The symptomatic group improved their performance during RF exposure, while there was no such effect in the non-symptomatic group.
The participants were daily mobile phone users, with and without symptoms attributed to regular mobile phone use.
The primary outcome measure was a virtual spatial navigation task modeled after the commonly used and validated Morris Water Maze, using distance traveled and improvement across trials as dependent variables.